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Groupon Downgraded After Results Miss Estimates: Hot Trends

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Popular searches on the Internet include Groupon(GRPN) after the stock was downgraded following earnings from the daily deals company that missed Wall Street estimates.

Groupon reported fourth-quarter revenue that rose 30% to $638 million, on target with analysts' expectations. The company posted a fourth-quarter loss of 12 cents a share. Excluding items, Groupon's loss was 1 cent a share, below analysts' expectations of a profit of 3 cents a share.

Groupon said it expects first-quarter revenue to be between $560 million and $610 million, while analysts were expecting $650 million.

Groupon was downgraded at Wells Fargo to "market perform" from "outperform" on Thursday and also downgraded to "underperform" from "neutral" by at least two other brokerages.

Sears(SHLD) is trending as the retailer reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results on lower costs.

The company reported a loss of $489 million, or $4.61 a share, in the fourth quarter, narrower than a loss of $2.4 billion, or $22.47 a share, a year ago. Excluding items, the company earned $1.12 a share, compared to analysts' expectations of a profit of 98 cents a share.

Sears has made efforts to cut costs through closing stores and shedding assets. CEO Edward Lampert said the company will be investing in in-store technology, online business and Sears' loyalty program in order to help drive results.

Fashion's Night Out is another popular search. The annual event when retailers offer discounted prices along with free entertainment will be canceled across the U.S. this year.

The event, created four years ago, was originally cultivated to aid retailers hit by the recession.

Steven Kolb, CEO of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, said the event has served its purpose as retailers' sales have steadily improved.

In a statement, organizers said the decision was made so retailers can focus on their own budgets instead of using their resources to put on the event.

The event will still take place in cities outside of the U.S.

The chatter on Main Street (a.k.a. Google, Yahoo! and other search sites) is always of interest to investors on Wall Street. Thus, each day, TheStreet compiles the stories that are trending on the Web, and highlights the news that could make stocks move.